Sebastian Bear (complete)

TWELVE

TWELVE

"Where are we though? In terms I can understand please," the couple were walking through the thick nothing. Madeline hadn't argued with Sebastian grasped her hand with his own. She felt she might trip if he weren't guiding her through the endless dark.

"We are in the middle. It's like the space between dreams. There's nothing here. This is it, absolute nothing but there is something around here...somewhere." Sebastian was walking with purpose, throwing his explanation over his shoulder. Madeline could hear the intense beat of her heart echoing in her chest. She wondered if Seb could hear it as well or if it were a weird side effect of being human in a place meant for something else.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" She mumbled. It felt like they'd been walking forever. Maybe they had been. It was hard to keep track of time in that nothing place. Madeline focused in on her hand, the feel of Sebastian's calloused palm was scratchy against her own. She tried to think of something other than their not so intimate contact but her mind was stuck there where skin touched skin. Something had gotten into her lately and it only seemed worse the more time she spent with her friend who supposedly loved her more than he loved living. 

Sebastian stopped suddenly causing Madeline to slam quite hard into his back. She stifled an embarrassed laugh but he didn't seem to notice. He was intensely focused. He reached through the darkness, his free hand moving through a black veil, turning somewhere the young woman couldn't see. There was a click followed by a blinding stream of white light.

Madeline winced at the newly lit space. Sebastian cawed like a cocky crow, so very proud that he had found the way back in. He tugged them both through the open door before picking Madeline up in a scooping hug and swinging her around. She blushed, her fingers gripping his shoulders as he lowered her feet back down to the ground.

"We did it!"

"You did it," Madeline corrected. She had done nothing but trailed behind him like a lost puppy.

"True," Sebastian grinned cheekily. Madeline seemed to notice that she had yet to separate herself from him and stepped back rather spastically when she realized her hands still clutching his arms. She squeaked a bit when he tugged her back against him, those dazzling purple eyes intense against her own. "You ready for the tour?" She moved away once more, straightening her clothes in an attempt to keep her mind from going to those dangerous places he seemed to always drag her thoughts toward.

Madeline nodded, taking her first real look at her surroundings. Avlis was picture perfect. It was green and lush with cotton candy skies and a far off whistling hum that sent a calming chill down her spine. Sebastian's smile was huge, his face lit with childlike excitement. Madeline caught herself more fascinated with his giddy expression than the magical world they'd just discovered.

"What's that?" Madeline pointed to a cobblestone path half laid under their feet.

"Avlis knows where you're going," Sebastian smiled. He took her hand once more. She didn't fight it. It would be a lie to say she didn't enjoy it. "This path lays out in front of you. You can't get lost here." They were walking, moving up a huge green hill sprinkled with funny little purple flowers. There was a serene pull that Madeline hadn't felt in weeks. She gave in to it, squeezing absentmindedly at Sebastian's hand.

"Where are we going first?"

"Home," Sebastian grinned. "I want you to meet my mom and dad."

That brought that soft calm up to a harsh panic. Madeline nodded, too afraid to let her cracking voice betray her. What must they think of her? She had been the reason he'd been sent away. She was the reason he had decided to stay away.